Norwegian sovereign fund posts 3% return on investment in Q2

21 August 2019 01:49 PM

Mubasher: Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, recorded a 3% return on investment after a strong finish to the second quarter of this year, led by strong earnings from US tech giants Microsoft and Facebook, Reuters reported.

The $1.1 trillion fund gained 256 billion Norwegian krones (NOK) ($28.5 billion) in the period between April and June, 0.19% below the fund’s benchmark index.

Returns were dragged down by uncertainty about global trade and economic growth, according to the fund’s deputy CEO Trond Grande.

However, “markets rallied toward the end of the period, driven partly by the prospect of more expansionary monetary policy in developed markets,” Grande was quoted by Reuters.

The fund’s 10 biggest equity holdings include five US tech firms, with Microsoft, Apple and Amazon topping the list.

The fund, which runs Norway’s oil revenues, saw its total value increasing to NOK 9.16 trillion ($1.02 trillion) by the end of the second quarter, from NOK 8.94 trillion in the prior one.